Making homemade mexican Queso Fresco cheese
My latin product stores nearby all charge 8.00$ for a small piece of mexican cheese; so it is easy to understand my motivation in wanting to learn how I could make my own queso fresco cheese at home. And the thing is, once you learn how simple it is to make this, I’m sure nobody reading this won’t ever buy expensive queso fresco again from the store!
If look at the simple definition of what cheese is, cheese is defined as "fresh or matured product obtained by separating the whey after curdling raw milk, made from wholly or partially skim milk, cream, buttermilk, or combinations of them.” Naturally the type of milk will affect the taste of the final cheese product; in Mexico, the queso fresco can be made from goat milk or cow’s milk.
Now let me show you how easy it is to put this fancy definition to work for us...
How to make Queso Fresco
Ingredients:
* 8 cups pasteurized whole milk
* 1/4 cup vinegar or lemon juice
* Salt, amount to your taste
* Some cotton cheesecloth and a strainer
Preparation:
1) First we bring the milk to a boil, using a medium-low setting so its temperature rises slowly, stirring occasionally; this took me 25 minutes. Turn the heat off, and let the hot milk rest 10 minutes.
2) Pour the vinegar or lemon juice in the milk and slightly mix; the cheese will start to curdle immediately. Let stand as is for 15 minutes, as the reaction takes place.
3) Arrange the cotton cheesecloth over a strainer and pour the curd cheese mixture from the pot through the strainer; tie the four corners of the cheesecloth then hang over a bowl to drain it thoroughly, for about 3 hours. Occasionally, press on the cheesecloth with your fingers slightly.
Untie the ends of your cheesecloth and place the cheese on a plate; season to salt as you like: it is ready to eat; you can also press it in a ramekin to give it a nice shape. This queso fresco cheese is delicious with honey, spices, mexican dishes, etc...
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